Chemical Eric Dealing with the Disintegration of Central Control PDF

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Chemical Eric: Dealing with the Disintegration of Central Control 1. What hormonal problem could be causing these symptoms? Eric might be having hormonal problems regarding his pituitary gland from his symptoms of low th yroid activity, low cortisone levels, low testosterone levels, high growth hormones, swelling in his k nee, and large feet and hands. 2. Why should joint damage be associated with rapid growth and low testosterone levels? The joint damage can be associated with his rapid growth and low testosterone level. The rapid gro wth accelerates bone growth and affects the blood flow to the cartilage. 3. Should Dr. Kidd tell Eric that he is probably sterile? Why would he be sterile? Yes, this could have been caused by the low testosterone levels. 4. Is there anything that they could try to do to stimulate spermatogenesis? Why is the absence of faci al hair important? Eric could try follicle stimulating hormone. The absence of hair growth is important because it can affect puberty which can affect fertility. 5. Why was he growing facial hair? Eric began growing facial hair when he was injected with hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin). Th e hCG can trigger a hormonal response to grow facial hair and other characteristics. 6. Why did he need jaw surgery? Because Eric had too much growth hormone as a child, he suffers from acromegaly. Some bones ma y fuse and growth halts, while other bones in the body may continue growing. Acromegaly is more c ommon in the body in places like the feet, hands, and jaw. Eric’s problem was that his upper jaw fus ed and his lower jaw did not, causing them to be disproportionate. 7. Why are his kidneys so active at night? Eric’s kidneys were active at night due to his body's inability to produce enough antidiuretic hormo ne. This hormone is produced by the hypothalamus, and is held in the posterior pituitary gland. Th e antidiuretic hormone signals the kidneys and regulates how much water to conserve. 8. It also turns out that he has unpredictable shock responses so that a small cut needing three stitche s left him pale and in shock while breaking his left wrist in at least 15 places did not. What hormone could be involved? Hormones such as steroids can be involved in unpredictable shock responses in Eric's body. These hormones are secreted by the adrenal gland.

9. If the pituitary is so important, and if Eric is not getting replacements of hormones the pituitary ma kes, why isn’t he dead? Eric is not dead because you can live with no pituitary gland. However, the lack of hormones must b e compensated for, and Eric must be placed on hormone replacement therapy in order to manage t he organs that are controlled by the pituitary gland....